The problem I always come across, and one that many others seem to have come across, is that the computers can’t find the game. None of them have firewalls activated and they are all able to communicate with each other for other tasks

The trick is in the connection type when setting up and joining the game. It seems like a really odd choice but select “IPX Connection for Direct Play“. The most obvious choice would be a “TCP/IP Local Area Network” connection but no games are ever found.

To use the IPX protocol you may have to set it up in the network settings for your LAN connection. This can be done in a few simple steps:

1. Go to the “Control Panel”.
2. Double-click on “Network connections”.
3. Right click on your LAN Connection and choose Properties.
4. In the list of protocols, choose Add.
5. Click Microsoft, and then click IPX/SPX Compatible Protocol
6. Click ok to add the protocol
7. You may need to restart

If I remember correctly this was also a problem for Age Of Empires 2 without the Conquerors expansion as well. Its always best to double check firewall settings as well because they seem have a habit of blocking things you’ve already asked them not to.